Environmental Sustainability, Health and Safety Bachelor of Science Degree

RIT’s Environmental Sustainability, Health and Safety Bachelor’s Degree

RIT’s environmental sustainability, health and safety degree (ESHS) prepares you to tackle some of the most pressing challenges of our time—climate change, public health and environmental protection. This interdisciplinary program combines a strong foundation in applied science and math with hands-on learning in sustainability, environmental and occupational health and safety, systems thinking and regulatory policy.

You’ll explore how human activities affect both the environment and public health—and learn how to design real-world solutions that make workplaces safer, communities healthier and industries more sustainable. Whether you're interested in working in industry, government, consulting, or research, this degree opens the door to in-demand careers where you’ll play a critical role in shaping a safer, more sustainable future.

Graduates of the ESHS program are highly sought after by employers who value their technical expertise and commitment to responsible innovation. Join a growing network of professionals helping organizations become more sustainable and socially responsible stewards of the products they make and the services they deliver.

Environmental Sustainability, Health and Safety Courses

The bachelor's degree in environmental sustainability, health and safety offers a comprehensive curriculum that pairs courses in environmental sustainability and environmental and occupational health and safety to provide you with a solid foundation in environmental and social dimensions of sustainability. With professional electives built into the program, you can tailor your course work around the topics and career paths that interest you most.

Build Your Expertise with an Option

The environmental sustainability, health and safety degree offers three options for you to further develop your understanding and expertise in a specialized area of study. 

• Environmental Sustainability Option – Changing aspects of an organization’s behavior can have positive effects on the environment including more sustainable agriculture, safer and more sustainable products, and remediation practices for contaminated environments. For instance, product manufacturers–those who manufacture everything from phones to food–face ethical, legal, and economic issues associated with supply chains, production, product use, and product end of life. In the environmental sustainability option, you will learn how sustainability informs all of these decisions and how to implement systems that lead to more sustainable outcomes.
   
• Health and Safety Option – In many companies, employees work in environments where they are exposed to electricity, fires and explosions, heat, chemicals, and complex machinery and robots. In this option, you’ll learn to protect employees who work in some of the most hazardous occupations. Course work will help you analyze workplace dangers to estimate risks and determine the best ways to protect employees from hazards. You’ll also learn how to empower workers to keep themselves safe. 
   
• Surveying and Geospatial Analysis Option – This option focuses on geographical information systems and databases that provide information that aids in the safety of people and places. For example, when a fire department gets an emergency call, they turn to a GIS system. They input the address of the fire, and the system provides firefighters with the layout of a home, its proximity to fire hydrants, any overhead power or electrical lines, and other pertinent information that speeds response and decision-making time. GIS also helps identify and monitor sources of pollution, and can be used to develop effective containment and remediation strategies to protect ecosystems and public health.

Students with an interest in environmental engineering and water resources can tailor their degree with a minor in water resources. The water resources minor includes courses in Civil Engineering Technology related to water and wastewater treatment systems and stormwater management.

Furthering Your Education in Environmental Health and Safety

RIT’s Combined Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s Degrees enable you to earn both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in  five years of study, giving you a competitive advantage.

• Environmental Sustainability, Health and Safety BS/Environmental Health and Safety Management MS: In this combined accelerated dual degree, the BS degree in environmental sustainability, health and safety provides you with knowledge and experience to make organizations more sustainable, more environmentally friendly, and safer. Then, in the environmental health and safety management master’s degree, you learn how to develop and implement an environmental, health, and safety management system, which enables companies to continually move towards sustainability and safety goals while conforming to national and international standards. You’ll learn to identify and manage risk, and to formulate effective strategies for integrating EHS into the business government agency or organization to drive EHS and sustainability performance.
• +1 MBA: Students who enroll in a qualifying undergraduate degree have the opportunity to enroll in the +1 MBA program by adding an MBA to their bachelor’s degree after their first year of study.

In addition, many students have completed the environmental sustainability, health and safety BS degree have advanced their education with a graduate degree from other top-tier universities including Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University.